- Mr. Leaf is responsible for this interview and its transcription.
Raj K. Bose
Raj K. Bose is an actor who played the role of the shop clerk who sold Hurley his lottery ticket, and then appeared alongside Jin in Hurley's dream in "Everybody Hates Hugo". These questions were created by Mr. Leaf, and were asked via email. The interview was posted on May 27, 2008.
Lostpedia: Do you watch Lost? If so, are you a die-hard fan or just a casual viewer? And do you have a favorite episode, character, etc?
Raj K. Bose: I certainly do. I am very curious to know what clues I can get from each episode to understand the background of the individuals involved in this series. One can never underestimate the importance of any character in Lost since each one seems to have connection with all the others. Something on the lines of the theory of the "6 degrees of separation."
It would be difficult to pick out any one favorite character since they are all so interesting. However, I would probably say that I like Hurley’s role (Jorge Garcia) the best, not because I worked with him but because he seems to represent the hidden conflicts and fears in all of us and the reasons why we keep running away from the unpleasant events of the past instead of squarely facing them.
Lostpedia: There's always an interesting story behind how the actors on the show get their roles. What's yours?
Raj K. Bose: I had played many roles as an extra on Lost: airlines [sic] crash survivors on the island, flight attendant at Sydney International Airport, etc. It was fun but my big break came when I was called in for an audition to play the character of Sanjay (the Indian front desk clerk) in season 1 episode 22. I got the role but later discovered that on the day of the shoot I was also scheduled to teach a Marketing class at University of Phoenix (I have been teaching at the university since 2002). Although the casting agent promised to have me chauffeur driven to the class from the set on time, I did not want to take a risk and decided to give up the role and teach instead. In the next season, the casting agent Margaret Doversola asked me to audition for the role of the store clerk in Episode 4 and I got the role. This time there were no scheduling conflicts because after the first season, I had stopped teaching at the local campus and was only teaching online. It had been my dream to have acted with Jorge and Daniel finally it had come true!
Lostpedia: What was it like working with Jorge Garcia and Daniel Dae Kim as well as the rest of the Lost cast & crew. Any interesting stories from while you were on set?
Raj K. Bose: Both the actors were great! I remember being briefed as an extra never to talk to the stars unless they speak to you first. However, as an actor I did not have that restriction. I met Jorge in the makeup room where he introduced himself and was surprised to know that I was a local actor and not someone flown in from LA. While shooting the gas station scene, an entire 7-11 store and gas station was rented out for the day. It was in the evening and I was dressed up in a convenience store clerk’s uniform. Some how the shoes were 2 sizes bigger than mine and I had a tough time walking in them without tripping over. The scene required me to be surrounded by news reporters in front of the store while Jorge would be driving into the station and I would recognize him as the man who had bought the winning lottery ticket and then run over to him with the entire TV crew following me. To eliminate any sound from their van, it was pushed instead on [sic] being driven. However, every time the car would be pushed into place it would stall or the timing would be off. Finally when things were in place, and we were ready to shoot, it began to rain. If that wasn’t bad enough, I kept tripping over (in my Ronald McDonald shoes) over the tracks laid in the ground. After numerous breaks, takes and trips, we finally called it wraps at around midnight. What a night! In case [sic] of the underground shoot with Jin and Hurley, it was at the Hawaii Film Studio where they had built the entire underground hatch indoors. I had to put on the chicken suit and join Daniel (another very friendly actor) in the food parlor in the hatch where Jorge was eating up everything in sight and giving a new meaning to the word gluttony. Daniel and I surprise him and while Daniel starts speaking in English, Jorge speaks in Korean. The chicken head was too heavy and loose for my head. So, Daniel had to hold the chicken head with one hand while delivering his dialog and Jorge had to deliver his lines without giggling at my dress. Between takes I would remove the head since it was stuffy and I literally was a chicken running around with my head cut off! Jorge had to eat (or pretend to) a lot of food and every time the shot was not good enough, a new set of food was provided to him. There were literally dozens of similar looking dishes of roast beef, chips, milk cartons, etc. all waiting in line for Jorge to devour. Of course he did not really eat all of it; he merely chewed at them and then spit it out in a garbage can. The entire shoot ended in the evening. It was great fun!
Lostpedia: I'm curious, did you have any more lines that were filmed but cut, it's always fun to find out what didn't make it past production?
Raj K. Bose: I did not have too many lines, however, I was asked to repeat them in different ways (tones, mannerisms, facial expressions, etc.) till the directors were satisfied.
Lostpedia: When you were filming, did you have any idea what was going on, given one scene you were in the real world selling lottery tickets, and the next you were wearing a chicken suit is [sic] a cold room with Hurley and Jin. What were you told for the scenes, anything or were you just left in the dark?
Raj K. Bose: Yes, I was briefed about the scenes but not about their relevance to the entire story. All I knew was that I was playing a role relevant to Hurley’s past and once was in a flashback while the other in his dream.
Lostpedia: What have you been doing since Lost. Got anything planned for the future?
Raj K. Bose: Since my face was exposed on the screen, it pretty much eliminated my chances of getting another role on Lost unless the revive the clerk’s role in future episodes (I hope they do J ). Living in Hawaii I am limited to auditioning for roles that take place on the islands. I have heard that next year some major movies are being planned to be shot in Hawaii (like Magnum PI) so I am keeping my fingers crossed.
